stuffed peppers

Another favorite! Remember the chicken and sauce for the chicken enchiladas? We’ll do the same thing but the stuffing will be a little different and we’re stuffing peppers, not tortillas!

Sometimes I change this recipe up a little by taking the stuffed poblano peppers and dredging them in egg and flour and bread crumbs and then frying them before baking and covering with the red sauce. It’s your choice but the way they are prepared below is a little healthier because it doesn’t include the frying step.

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: The chicken stays very moist if you cook it in a pressure cooker. Don’t have a pressure cooker? Then a large dutch oven is fine – but I highly recommend mastering the art of cooking with an old fashioned pressure cooker!

1. Roast the poblano peppers in order to get the skins off. To do this, put the peppers in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss the peppers to coat them. On a cookie sheet, put the peppers under your oven broiler on high until the peppers start to brown. Turn and roast other side. If you have a grill, you can do the same thing on a grill.

2. When the peppers have browned, place them in a large bowl and seal the bowl with plastic wrap. Let them stand while you do the rest of the recipe. This will cause then to “sweat” and the skin will easily peel off.

3. Cook the chicken. In a pressure cooker, heat a little olive oil in the bottom. Add the bacon and cook for a few minutes to render the fat. Pat chicken breasts dry, salt and pepper and and put them in the bottom of the pressure cooker to brown for a couple of minutes on both sides.

4. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, just brown the chicken (as above) in a large dutch oven and just cover and cook in that.

8. Place lid securely on pressure cooker or dutch oven. In the pressure cooker, bring to a high boil and the weight on the lid will “rock.” Keep on higher heat and cook for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let steam dissipate. Remove lid. Remove chicken breasts to cool. Reserve liquid.

9. In a dutch oven, bring everything to a boil and then reduce heat, cover, and cook until chicken is done. Don’t overcook the chicken! Use a thermometer inserted in one of the breasts if you need to.

10. Separate chicken and red sauce. When chicken is cooled, tear/shred with your hands. Place in a large mixing bowl. You’ll finish the red sauce later. (step 15)

11. To make the chicken stuffing, in a large skillet, melt 2 tbl. butter.

16. For the red sauce, in another large skillet, make a roux out of 4 tbl each of butter and flour. Cook until the color of peanut butter.

17. Add liquid from cooked chicken a ladle at a time mixing well between each.

18. Add the can of tomato soup

19. Heat oven to 450°.

20. Take the “sweated” poblanos and peel off the skins. I keep the stems on but slit each pepper down one side. Take out the membrane and seeds.

21. Stuff each pepper with the chicken mixture.

22. Spray a large casserole pan with cooking spray.

23. Place stuffed peppers in casserole dish.

24. Repeat until bottom is covered.

25. Ladle the red sauce over the peppers. Cover the peppers about halfway. You may have red sauce leftover. You can either reheat it when serving the peppers so your guests can add more or freeze the excess to use in a later recipe!